Modern family setups — like the ones where two individuals with their own kids come together to form a mixed family — used to be a formula for trouble, a problem too tricky to tread. These days, situations like these are not as complicated, and certainly not that unusual anymore: you see exes becoming friends for their children, and former rivals raising their half-sibling kids harmoniously.

One refreshing sight to behold is the close bond between a stepparent and a stepchild, as in the case of former professional basketball player Chris Tan and his wife Sherilyn Reyes's 19-year-old son Ryle Paolo Santiago. Ryle has been under the care of Chris since he was three years old. Now making a name for himself as a member of the dance group Hashtags on ABS-CBN's noontime show "It's Showtime," Ryle has nothing but good things to say about the man he calls "Dad."

His close relationship with his dad is also evident on social media, where he uses the surname "Tan."

On Instagram, Ryle openly expresses how proud he is of Chris.

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Likewise, Chris is just as proud of him.

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No one could be happier about this mutual affection the two share than Sherilyn. Even now that she and Chris have their own kids together, Ryle remains their priority, so much so that their plans often revolve around the teenager's schedule.

She also recalled an instance in the past when she, Chris, and Ryle were just starting their life together and they were so hard up. "Yung Christmas namin, pag pinag-uusapan namin, [sabi ko], 'Alam mo bang wala tayong pera nun?' Ang saya-saya ng Pasko nya pero di nya alam, wala kaming pera.

"We just wanted him to feel, 'You're part of this new family', na buy-1-take-1 tayo, hindi pwedeng hindi," she reiterated. Sherilyn and Ryle's biological father, ABS-CBN business unit head Junjun Santiago, separated after four years of marriage, and Sherilyn had to raise her son by herself until Chris came along.